“Gokuu?” Her quiet voice asked, a hesitant, sad whisper in the darkness. It was a still moment; one of the precious moments between passion and sleep; the moment between being fully awake and peacefully dreaming. There had been many moments like this, the time when he felt the absolute closest to his wife. After being so physically close to her, feeling every part of her, being next to her like this was almost dreamlike. It was so perfect sometimes that Gokuu could scarcely believe that he was actually there with her.

There was moonlight shimmering in through the window, spilling onto the soft white covers on the bed, bathing the entire room in a cool blue color. The mirror glinted, and in its reflection, he could see the bright, glowing moon, soft white clouds moving across it slowly. It was a perfect summer evening, the kind of evening when they would open up the windows and let the warm air from outside waft in, smelling of pine and earth. He loved to wake up early, and hear the birds begin to chirp in the trees outside, mixing with the sound of crickets in the garden beneath the window. It was beautiful and seemingly perfect, but Gokuu knew that there was some deep sadness locked up in the darkness of the night. He was leaving tomorrow, and he took a deep breath, knowing how much it was going to hurt. Leaving was always painful for him, though he would never show it. He had to be strong for his family, protect them from any sort of harm. What he felt and what he wanted really didn’t make a difference anymore. He had responsibilities.

ChiChi was facing him, sitting up slightly in bed next to him, sheets covering her body. In the moonlight, her skin looked dark and perfect, shadows falling across her body from the window. She tucked her smooth legs under her and kneeled next to his laying body, almost in prayer position, her hands clasped against her chest.

“Hai?” He answered unsteadily, suddenly very aware of how beautiful she was. Her eyes shone so brightly in the darkness, full of tears yet to fall. Her hair was loose and it spilled across her shoulders, shining blue in the moonlight, silky, soft, and everywhere.

“Please don’t leave me tomorrow.” She whispered ever so softly, and a tear sparkled down her smooth cheek, spilling onto her hands. “Please, Gokuu. Not again. I don’t think I can take it again.”

His heart stopped beating for a moment, then slowly began breaking, as he stared into her pleading eyes. There was nothing in the world that he wouldn’t do for her --- to protect her, keep her safe, warm, happy. He would break every rule, fight away any danger, change anything, do anything, be anything. He would gladly give his own life just so she could go on living, and he would do anything, absolutely anything to keep her by his side. She was so precious, so delicate, and special….He felt as though he had been given such a gift, to have this beautiful thing in his life. To have someone to lay with until morning, listening to the crickets outside, laughing and smiling, soft and beautiful. And what if something happened to her? What could he possibly do with his life if he didn’t have ChiChi to protect? All the fighting, all the practicing, everything --- it was all for her, for their children….

The threat of danger was near, very near. After the destruction that Majin Buu had caused, he knew that he could never let it happen again. ChiChi had been hurt before; he’d lost her for a moment. And he never, never wanted it to happen again. Feeling that her spirit had been extinguished, knowing that her heart was no longer beating was absolutely excruciating to him. For someone that was so alive, so full of energy and spirit to be tossed away like that was too painful to imagine. He had to keep Ubuu from hurting the world, had to keep him from becoming the malevolent force that Majin Buu had been. For her. Everything was for her, to protect her. If he let his guard down for even a moment, if Ubuu got out of control, what would happen to her; his beautiful, precious ChiChi?

“Gomen nasi, ChiChi…I have to.” He whispered, a lump in his throat. The look of disappointment and pain on her face was enough to nearly kill him. She was very still for a moment, tears pooling in her eyes, glinting in the moonlight. He rose up, reaching for her, feeling a sudden need to hold her in his arms, her heart beating against his own.

“Iie!” She cried out suddenly, wrenching away as if his hands were poison. “I can’t, Gokuu! I can’t do this anymore!” She threw her hands up in frustration, sobs wracking her small body until she was shaking violently before him. “I can’t take it! If you want to leave --- just leave! Don’t do this to me!”

“But, ChiChi….” He began, feeling a sudden panic. “I don’t want to leave….I just….”

“Just stop it!” She snapped viciously through her tears. “Don’t even try to explain, Gokuu. If you had any idea how much you’re hurting me, how much you’re hurting your family….” She spat out, jumping off the bed in anger. A blanket was clutched in front of her, covering her up. “Kuso! It just makes me sick.”

Gokuu slowly sat up, tilting his head sideways and looked deep into her eyes. “I’d never want to hurt you, ChiChi. You know I wouldn’t want to hurt you.”

ChiChi turned away, wrapping her arms around herself. “Well, you did. You have.”

He didn’t know what to say; how to make her tears stop. He wanted to hold, he felt --- knew with all of his heart that she needed him to hold her. She was so far away though. He didn’t know how to reach her. Before it had been easy. If he made a mistake, she forgave him, simple enough. All he had to do was bring her flowers, give her a hug, or offer to help her with something around the house. She’d smile as though it were the most wonderful thing he’d every done for her, her eyes full of happy tears, her cheeks rosy with a blush. Now she stood before him, her bare back exposed in the moonlight, shaking with sobs, looking small and helpless, and so very far away.

“I….I could do the breakfast dishes tomorrow….” He stammered out the offer, his voice wavering. His mind desperately searched for the right words to say.

She paused for a minute, her shoulders, falling slightly. “Oh, Gokuu.” She shook her head slowly, still turned away from him. “I just don’t know what to do without you.” She whimpered again, then started crying harder than she had before, and it sounded to Gokuu as if she were falling apart, sobs shaking her entire body.

He stepped out of bed, not caring about the fact that he wasn’t wearing anything, and walked to her, wrapping her in his strong arms. He gently pulled her to the floor and then into his lap, wiped away her tears with steady hands, and smoothed her silky hair out of her face. She wrapped her arms around him tightly, as if she were afraid he’d slip away. He kissed the top of her head and breathed in the familiar scent of her shampoo; like rain, delicate white flowers, the forest trees, and sunshine. With one very slow movement, she lifted her head up, and gazed into his eyes, begging, pleading.

I’ll stay, he thought. Don’t cry, I’ll stay. I love you, I’ll never leave you, I will stay here with you forever, holding, loving you, just like this.

But instead: “I have to go.” He brought a gentle hand up to caress her soft, tear streaked cheek. I love you, ChiChi. I love more than anything. “I’m sorry.”

And he held her there, rocking her back and forth like a child, crying softly into her hair --- until she finally cried herself to sleep. The sun peaked over the mountains, pale light spilling through the window into the room, and the birds began to sing happily, completely oblivious. And inside the Son house, Gokuu still held onto his wife, the sunshine warming his body, his eyes red and sore, his heart breaking.

Gokuu swallowed hard, and looked out the window, Piccolo at his side. From somewhere behind him, he could hear Gohan talking about Videl again, sounding warped and strange to Gokuu’s ears. All he could hear was ChiChi’s heartbeat, and all he could feel was her ki, slowly burning away, feeling frightened and sad and full of loss. Just once he wanted to do the right thing, to say the right thing to her. And he never, ever wanted ChiChi to have to cry again.

Potuto followed closely behind Pi, toting his medical kit as his side. After taking care of all of those soldiers for hours, he was more than just a little tired. He was also itching to talk to Koronu, because he had a lot of new information for her. More than a handful of the wounded soldiers claimed that the attackers appeared to be of human origin. What does that mean? He asked himself, keeping his eyes on Pi’s blood red cape and swinging tail. Have they come to rescue ChiChi? To seek revenge? What is this going to do to our plan? The assassination has to be done precisely and accurately. If we have the humans staging another attack, it could get very confusing and difficult.

He scratched his head thoughtfully. On the other hand though, a diversion could be exactly what we need to pull of the assassination. If the humans land and create chaos, Sukuashi could get lost in the mix, and a death could be easily portrayed as accidental, or a victory for the human side.

Ahead of him, Pi slowed to a stop, and waved away the guards at his door. She flung it open, waiting just long enough for Potuto to squeeze through the opening, then slammed it shut again, not wanting the guards to see ChiChi. It was very dark for a moment, the only light coming from a fire on the other side of the room, nearly burnt all the way out. The coals were glowing red and there were slight sparks coming from it, but no flames.

And curled up in front of the fire, asleep on the stone floor, was ChiChi. Her back was too them, and she didn’t give any indication that she knew they were there. She was taking deep breaths, her hair in her pretty face, glowing red in the light from the burned out fire. There were many things he needed to discuss with ChiChi as well. He wanted to tell her what the wounded soldiers had seen, wanted to let her know that her family had probably come for her. But with Pi in the room, that could prove to be very difficult. Taking another step towards her, he suddenly realized that ChiChi was wounded herself. There were several small cuts all over her, and a deeper cut in her side. He cut a glance at Pi, who merely rose an eyebrow.

“She probably stepped out of line.”

Potuto fought the impulse to smack her. He couldn’t even fathom the fact that Sukuashi was his father sometimes, or that Pi was his sister. How anyone so cruel and unintelligent could be related to him, he didn’t know. He was certain that he didn’t belong in this race, on this planet. He was different from the other Saiya-jins, he knew that much. Instead of an unrelenting drive for power, Potuto had been blessed with kindness. And this small, helpless human….He felt a certain protectiveness over her, a need to show kindness and compassion that he had never felt before. Sukuashi had taken advantage of her, had tortured her by bringing her here to this planet, and stepping even beyond that, he had hurt her too. It was almost too much for Potuto to handle.

Pi gestured towards ChiChi’s sleeping form, then stepped over to Sukuashi’s bureau. “Do what you have to do and get the hell out of here. I have things to do before Sukuashi gets back from his meeting with the council. And I was told to take the human into hiding.”

She opened the cabinet with a flourish, a delighted smile falling on her face as she stared at the sword placed there. She took a breath, and gently fingered the cool metal, not even flinching when her finger drew blood. “Beautiful.” She murmured. “What an absolutely beautiful weapon.”

Pi turned and smirked at him. “Can you imagine how many lives have ended with a simple slash of this sword? How much power this blade holds?” Her eyes flicked to the sword again, admiring her reflection in the steel. “The most perfect way to kill, the most beautiful, perfect way to draw blood, to cause pain.”

Biting his tongue, Potuto bent down near ChiChi and opened up his medical bag, searching for the needle and the numbing solution. There was no perfect way to kill, nothing good could ever come from a weapon like that. Pi had always fancied the sword, always practiced with it, always sought to kill her enemies with a slash rather than hand to hand combat. Potuto thought she must be completely evil. There was no good in that black heart of hers. Sukuashi might appear to be in charge, but in his heart he felt that he was more Pi’s marionette than anything. He dug out the numbing solution and set the bottle down next to ChiChi’s head. The movement caused ChiChi to open her eyes, and a frightened look appeared on her face. It quickly changed to surprise when she saw him.

“Potuto!” She exclaimed, sitting up quickly, putting a gentle hand on his shoulder. “I found it!”

Potuto’s blood ran cold, knowing that Pi must have heard her. ChiChi must have seen the fear in his eyes, because she immediately snapped her head up, searching for some sign of danger. They both turned to find her at a standstill, completely unmoving, with her hand still on the sword in the cabinet. Pi’s eyes narrowed in anger and suspicion.

“Found what?”

“Nani?” ChiChi asked, faltering a bit.

Pi titled her head menacingly, her upper lip curling into a snarl. “What is it that you found, human?”

Her mouth opened and closed quickly. Potuto could practically taste her desperation and fear, and he could feel Pi’s anger crackling around them like raw electricity. His Saiya-jin sister moved across the room like a shadow, flicking the sword against ChiChi’s throat in seconds. A fine line of blood appeared where the sword was barely touching her pale skin, and ChiChi gasped in fear, her hands wildly flailing at her sides. Potuto moved and Pi’s gaze found him instantly, her eyes burning with anger.

“Don’t even think about moving.” She warned him. She pressed the sword harder against ChiChi’s throat, and the woman blinked back tears, staring into Pi’s cold, evil eyes. “What did you find?”

Finally, after what seemed like a lifetime, ChiChi lifted a shaking hand and pointed to the fire, almost completely burnt out now. The sword pressed hard against her throat, she barely managed to choke out the words. “Warmth.” She said, her chin trembling. “The fire….warmth….I found warmth.”

Pi rolled her eyes and pulled the sword away, pushing ChiChi’s back against the stone floor with a hard shove. “Baka….Stupid human….” She snapped. “Warmth….”

Potuto let out the breath he had been holding and closed his eyes in relief. They were safe. For a moment he was certain that Pi was going to kill her, that their entire plan had been ruined with just a few simple words. He could have almost hugged ChiChi, for that excuse, for that lie.

“Hurry up!” Pi suddenly yelled at Potuto, waving the sword about wildly. “We do not have a lot of time here, baka!”

ChiChi frowned, staring down at the needle. Potuto grimaced slightly. “Gomen ne, ChiChi. It won’t hurt as much as the last one. I’ll numb it very well.” He gently wiped the numbing solution onto her arm with a piece of cloth, careful to cover the entire area. With his other hand, he squeezed the needle slightly, then quickly pricked it into her soft, pale arm.

ChiChi gasped in pain, wrenching her head away in agony. Her eyes were shut so tightly that wrinkles appeared on the sides and she was clenching her jaw as tightly as she possibly could. He could see the vein in her arm gently pulsing with the injection, and the area around was beginning to bleed slightly. When all of the injection had entered her body, he slowly pulled the needle away, wiping her arm softly with more numbing solution.

She turned to him with tears in her eyes, looking down at her arm in pain. He studied her face, searching for signs that the serum was working. By the third injection, she should definitely begin to feel the effects of the Saiya-jin injection. Strength, appetite, the pause in age. He stared critically at her face, trying to find any evidence at all. Very slowly and slightly, the wrinkles and creases on her face had began to flatten and disappear, her skin tightening and smoothing all over. Her eyes appeared larger and began to sparkle with a innocence that could only be found in the young, but a deepness that could only be found with age.

He blinked a couple of times. She was actually quite beautiful. She had the dark look of a Saiya-jin, but she was softer, prettier, almost. Instead of that deep Saiya-jin snarl, she had soft, deep red lips, delicate cheekbones, and feminine features. Kakarroto, his half brother, was a very lucky Saiya-jin indeed. He could see now why Sukuashi fancied her, why he had brought her here in the first place. He leaned back and squinted, taking in every part of her. She was really, truly lovely. A small smile lit up his scarred face, but was quickly replaced with a frown at the realization that this put her in even more danger. A beautiful woman, alone with a colony full of unruly Saiya-jins could only mean trouble. Now that she was more attractive, she was going to be getting a lot more attention, and not just from Sukuashi. He had to protect her somehow, watch over her.

Kakarroto had seen something special in her, and he had claimed her for his own. Like all Saiya-jins, Potuto knew how important possessions were to them. The very few things in life that they possessed, they absolutely treasured; protected with their lives, sought to preserve. Something as special as this Earth woman, this lovely ChiChi, had to be precious to his half brother. And because he owed it to him, sensing that Kakarroto was a kind soul, much like himself, he knew that he would protect his mate for him. Now matter how hard Sukuashi or any other tried to break this delicate woman, he would never let them.

“Nani?” She asked in a frightened voice, seeing the look on his face. “What’s happening?”

“It’s working.” He said simply, then began putting his materials away in his medical kit.

“That’s lovely.” Pi interrupted in sarcasm. “Now can we get the hell out of here? We have to get the Earthling into hiding now. I believe something very big is about to happen.”

Chapter 44
Previous chapter

 My guestbook -- Sign it!